Palazzo Comunale in Prato

The historic building houses centuries-old halls and a painting gallery with portraits of illustrious citizens

The building housing the Municipality of Prato is located in piazza del Comune and was designed, together with the other edifices in the piazza, in the 1200s. The building has been the centre of political life in the city for centuries, and the room where the civic council meets bears its name.

The room was richly decorated around 1415 with frescoes depicting a Madonna and Child Enthroned and Militant Justice, a work by Arrigo di Niccolò. Alongside these, beginning at the end of the century, portraits of the city’s benefactors were added, which were later used to construct the nucleus of the building’s painting gallery, together with 19th-century works.

These paintings are not the only works to be found around the historic building: in the various rooms, there are furnishings and wooded carvings as well as other interesting frescoes. The courtyard is home to another artwork, whose copy is on display in the piazza: the fountain of Young Bacchus by Ferdinando Tacca, commissioned in 1653 to celebrate Prato’s promotion to city.

If there is one city that can impress those looking for lesser-known destinations, it’s Prato. Considering how the city is presented in the press, visitors will be surprised to discover an elegant and well-preserved historic city centre, as impressive as the most famous Medieval cities dotting Tuscany. ...